Containerized candles are well known for their ability to increase the longevity of a candle. A containerized candle has tallow or wax and a wick contained in a transparent or otherwise translucent vessel, such as a glass apothecary jar. The walls of the vessel prevent the loss of wax from run off when the wax is melted by the flaming wick when lit, and can allow for a more decorative presentation when applied on the exterior surface of the vessel. However, one disadvantage of containerized candles is that central placement of the wick in the vessel can be problematic due to a restricted neck portion at the mouth of the vessel. A further disadvantage of the containerized candles is the efficiency of their combustion, as sufficient ambient air may not be drawn to the base of the flame to oxidize carbon particles present in later stages of the combustion. In some cases, incomplete combustion can cause the flame to be smoky, and the exhaust will therefore contain dark carbon residue which can be deposited undesirably on the interior of the vessel walls.
Therefore, another problem with containerized candles is providing a sufficient intake airflow to the base of the flame. For example, while the vessel prevents the run off of melted wax and contributes to the retention of the thermal energy to melt more wax near the wick, the vessel also limits and obstructs the intake airflow to the flame needed for the combustion process. Ambient intake air must be drawn downward into the vessel while hot exhaust combustion gases are simultaneously vented upwards and out of the mouth of the vessel. In general, hot exhaust from the flame rises upward in a convection flow, which creates a negative pressure to draw cooler ambient intake air into the vessel interior toward the base of the flame. However, passing through the mouth of the vessel, the proximity of the opposing exhaust and intake airflows can create turbulence within the vessel interior, which restricts and retards the flow of ambient air to the base of the flame. Consequently, the combustion in containerized candles often produces smoke, and in some cases the created turbulence can also destabilize the flame to cause flickering of the flame and uneven burning of the contained wax.
A candle cover described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,382,962 attempts to isolate the cooler oxygen rich intake air from the hot combustion gases of a containerized candle. However, one disadvantage of the candle cover is that both the hot and cold airflows are drawn through the top cover simultaneously and then into the container interior where they are allowed to mix. Further, the intake air is drawn from the same region where the exhaust gases are deposited, i.e. an area exterior and adjacent to the container mouth, thus contributing to the lack of oxygen reaching the base of the flame.
A further disadvantage of current containerized candles is that they are made of a glass material. The glass walls of the vessel typically become hot to the touch when the candle is burned for an extended period of time, which can be detrimental to the touch of the candle user during and after the candle has been extinguished. Another disadvantage of glass vessels is that they must be preheated before being filled with liquid wax. This preheating is used to help reduce the formation of blisters between the wax and the adjacent glass walls, when the filled vessel is cooled after the wax is poured. A further disadvantage with current glass containerized candles is that they can require bulky foam packaging for transport, due to the fragility of the glass container and the heat sensitivity of the contained wax candle.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a candle container to obviate or mitigate at least some of the above presented disadvantages.